There’s a point every August when something changes.

It might still be 80 degrees in the afternoon. The boat ramps are still packed with pontoons. Kids are still swimming off the docks. By every definition, it’s summer.

But if you spend enough mornings outside, you can feel it.

You walk out before sunrise and the air is just a little cooler. The days are getting noticeably shorter. The water has been warm for weeks, vegetation is fully developed, and baitfish that were tiny earlier in the summer suddenly seem to be everywhere.

For Danielle and me, this is one of our favorite stretches of the open-water season.

Not necessarily because it produces the easiest fishing, but because August is a transition month. Bass and walleyes aren’t following the same script they were in June, and we’re beginning to see little hints of what’s coming next.

And, admittedly, by this point I’m starting to think about duck season every time a flock of geese flies over the boat.

Don’t Fish August Like It’s June

One of the easiest mistakes to make in fishing is continuing to do something simply because it worked a month ago.

We all do it.

You remember catching fish on a certain weedline, point or reef, so the next time you launch the boat that’s naturally where you go.

Sometimes they’re still there.

Sometimes they’re not.

By August, many lakes have gone through a tremendous amount of change. Aquatic vegetation has reached maturity. Young-of-the-year baitfish have grown considerably. Water temperatures have been elevated for weeks, and fishing pressure has been relentless on popular lakes.

The fish have been adapting the entire time.

We need to do the same.

That’s why this time of year, we’re less interested in finding a specific spot and more interested in figuring out what the fish are currently relating to.

If we catch a good bass buried in healthy cabbage, I’m immediately wondering whether that vegetation is the pattern.

If we mark walleyes sitting off a sharp break next to deep water, we’re looking for another area with the same characteristics.

One fish might be luck.

Two or three fish doing the same thing starts becoming information.

August Can Make You Slow Down

Summer fishing has a tendency to make us impatient.

There’s so much water available that you can spend an entire day running around trying to force fish into biting.

August has taught us to slow down.

That doesn’t necessarily mean fishing slowly. Sometimes we’re covering water quickly with moving baits. It means being more deliberate about why we’re fishing somewhere.

Before dropping the trolling motor, we’ll often idle around and look.

Is there bait?

Is the vegetation healthy?

Are there fish positioned on the structure?

Is the wind pushing into this area?

Does the spot provide quick access to deeper water?

If the answer to all of those questions is no, we’re probably not going to spend much time there just because it looks good on the map.

That’s something I’ve gotten much better at over the years.

I used to have a hard time leaving good-looking water.

Danielle is actually pretty good at reminding me when I’m doing it.

We’ll go fifteen or twenty minutes without seeing anything promising, and eventually I’ll hear something along the lines of, “Are there actually fish here?”

Fair question.

Sometimes that’s enough to make me finally pick up the trolling motor.

For Bass, Find the Best Vegetation—Not Just Vegetation

August can be an awesome month for bass because vegetation has had an entire summer to develop.

But not all weeds are equal.

A huge weed flat can look incredible and still produce very little. Then you’ll find one small section with thicker, healthier vegetation, a different bottom composition or slightly deeper water nearby and suddenly there are fish everywhere.

That’s the stuff we’re looking for.

Instead of simply fishing the edge of an entire weedline, pay attention to irregularities.

A point in the weeds.

A pocket.

A small inside turn.

An isolated clump growing away from everything else.

A section where one type of vegetation transitions into another.

Those little differences can concentrate fish.

Frogs and other topwater presentations are obviously fun this time of year, especially around thick vegetation, but don’t be afraid to get underneath the surface. Texas rigs, jigs and weedless plastics allow you to pick apart areas that moving baits might pass over too quickly.

And when you find one fish, don’t immediately leave.

There might be a reason that fish was there.

Walleyes Give You Options

Walleyes can feel scattered in late summer because they genuinely can be.

Some fish may be relating to deep structure. Others can be surprisingly shallow, especially during low-light periods or when wind creates favorable feeding conditions.

That’s why we don’t automatically assume August means “go deep.”

We’re letting the lake tell us.

If fish are relating tightly to bottom, a jig and live bait remains incredibly difficult to beat. If they’re spread across a larger area, trolling or using a presentation that allows us to cover water becomes much more efficient.

Slip bobbers also remain one of our favorite tools when we know exactly where fish are positioned.

There isn’t one magic August presentation.

The best presentation is the one that matches what the fish are doing.

That sounds ridiculously simple, but anglers—including us—have an amazing ability to make fishing more complicated than it needs to be.

Pay Attention to the Bait

This is probably the biggest thing we’re watching as summer begins winding down.

Food.

By August, baitfish have had months to grow. Perch, shiners and other forage aren’t the tiny meals they were earlier in the season.

Predators respond accordingly.

If we’re seeing bait concentrated somewhere, that area immediately gets our attention.

Modern electronics make this easier than ever, but you don’t necessarily need thousands of dollars of electronics to recognize what’s happening.

Watch the surface.

Watch birds.

Look for minnows around vegetation.

Pay attention when you clean fish.

Notice what they’re spitting up in the livewell.

The lake is constantly giving you clues.

You just have to notice them.

This Is Also When Fall Starts Sneaking Into Our Heads

This might be my favorite part of August.

We’ll be out bass fishing and hear geese in the distance.

Immediately, fishing takes a back seat for about thirty seconds.

I’ll look up.

Danielle will look up.

And we’ll both know exactly what the other person is thinking.

Duck season is coming.

Suddenly the conversations in the boat start shifting.

Did we ever fix that thing on the blind?

How many decoys are we actually bringing this year?

We should probably get Ember out for some retrieves tonight.

Where did we put that bag of grass?

Fishing season isn’t over—not even close—but hunting season has officially started creeping into our thoughts.

That’s part of what makes August such a cool month for people who enjoy everything outdoors.

We’re still squeezing everything we can out of summer while simultaneously preparing for fall.

Enjoy the In-Between

It’s easy to spend August looking ahead.

Waterfowl hunters are counting down to opening day. Deer hunters are checking cameras. Dog owners are ramping up training. Ice fishermen—although I question their sanity—are probably already thinking about first ice.

But there’s still a lot of summer left.

Some of the year’s best bass fishing is happening right now. Walleyes are feeding. The evenings are still long enough to launch the boat after work. And we’re getting closer to that stretch when cool mornings and warm afternoons make it genuinely difficult to stay inside.

So enjoy the transition.

Pay attention to what the lake is telling you instead of fishing memories from earlier in the summer.

Try something different.

Follow the bait.

Fish that weird little patch of weeds everyone else drives past.

And when a flock of geese flies overhead while you’re standing on the front deck…

It’s perfectly acceptable to stop casting for a minute and watch them.

We certainly do.

– Max & Danielle
Burley Outdoors